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Real Action Needed Against Ludicrous Tuition Increase!

an open letter to students of University of
Alberta

In this fight against tuition increases, we students expect our
representatives to be the sharp end of the spear. However, it appears
that SU politicians are only sharp at rearranging their org chart.
The recently unveiled letter-writing
campaign amounts to too little, too late. These tuition hikes are
the greatest financial imposition on students in years. The gross
outrage we should be showing is manifesting slowly, in comparisons of
President
Samarasekera's salary to U.S. President Obama's, or Provost/VP
(academic) Carl Amrhein's daily
wage to the average student's monthly wage, in comments wondering
when
people at the top will start taking cuts in their bonuses, and in
the voices calling for a tuition strike. A plan is required, but it
cannot be the empty sloganeering and meaningless compromise that we
are accustomed to. The response must come directly from students.
And just as the administration shows no restraint in its assault, so
must we show no restraint in reacting.

We've been passive for
too long and it's to our detriment. Our apparent apathy is proving to
the administration that they can make decisions without regard to the
impact on students. We are setting a dangerous precedent for the
future.

Many students have already realized that waiting for
the politicians is waiting to be let down. Appealing to the very
people who created this situation is asking our captors to remove our
chains. Students right now are lacking a framework, but we can create
our own framework. We don't have have to wait for one to materialize.